Over Half of Apple's Retail Stores in China Reopened Amid Ongoing Coronavirus Outbreak

[MacRumors]

Apple has now reopened 29 of its 42 retail locations in China, according to Apple's store websites in the country that were reviewed by Bloomberg. Many of Apple's stores in China have been shut down for the last few weeks due to the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak.

Most locations that have been reopened continue to operate on shortened hours, with some open for less than eight hours a day. Additional stores are expected to reopen as soon as this week, but there is no word on when all Apple Stores in China will be operational.

Apple last week said that its March quarter revenue will fall short of expectations because of constrained iPhone supplies worldwide and lower customer demand for Apple products in China caused by store closures.

The shuttered stores and limited hours have significantly reduced customer traffic, and though Apple's supplier factories in areas outside of the Hubei province have reopened, ramp up to full production on devices has been slower than expected.

According to a second report from Bloomberg, Apple's iPhone sales started dropping in January as the coronavirus spread. Numbers supplied by a UBS research note that includes official Chinese data suggests iPhone sales fell 28 percent compared to the prior month, which is a larger than normal decline for that time of the year.

February sales numbers are expected to be "far worse" due to supply and demand issues related to the outbreak.

Apple has said it is continuing to monitor the coronavirus situation and will provide additional information during its next quarterly earnings call in April.

Article Link: Over Half of Apple's Retail Stores in China Reopened Amid Ongoing Coronavirus Outbreak

 

[Diamond Dog]

Seems like a pretty bad idea.

 

[OriginalMacRat]

Seems like a pretty bad idea.

But those hourly staff will be happy to be getting paid again.

 

[DelayedGratificationGene]

Amazing how the media hype machine can whip up a panic over a flu virus. The media loves this btw. However Spring is right around the corner and with it goes the corona flu virus. Everyone is going to feel very silly in a few months for panicking over nothing

 

[outskirtsofinfinity]

Amazing how the media hype machine can whip up a panic over a flu virus. The media loves this btw. However Spring is right around the corner and with it goes the corona flu virus. Everyone is going to feel very silly in a few months for panicking over nothing

The bottom line is, when your Government:

• quarantines 50% of your population
• bans any travel, even down the street, without a permit
• marches quarantine violators to re-education camps
• runs two city cremation units at full capacity for weeks
• starts up 40 additional incinerators
• uses the military to run point on infection control
• stops nearly the entire workforce in half the country

...then the official story is nothing but propaganda lies. No country commits economic suicide for a "flu" virus that has killed a couple thousand people in a country of 1.7 billion.

This is a lot worse than what you are hearing.

 

[DelayedGratificationGene]

The bottom line is, when your Government:

• quarantines 50% of your population
• bans any travel, even down the street, without a permit
• marches quarantine violators to re-education camps
• runs two city cremation units at full capacity for weeks
• starts up 40 additional incinerators
• uses the military to run point on infection control
• stops nearly the entire workforce in half the country

...then the official story is nothing but propaganda lies. No country commits economic suicide for a "flu" virus that has killed a couple thousand people in a country of 1.7 billion.

This is a lot worse than what you are hearing.

The media can cause a public panic forcing govts to act irrationally causing more panic. This is a non event that will be for the history books in a few weeks

 

[outskirtsofinfinity]

This is a non event that will be for the history books in a few weeks

I hope you're right.

 

[thadoggfather]

So ... Tim Cook’s internal memo about prioritizing safety of employees was cancelled lol

I get that we don’t know how long this thing will be going on for but it’s gotten worse and less contained since they made the decision to close stores in the first place

 

[Plutonius]

Seems like a pretty bad idea.

It looks like the Chinese have given up trying to quarantine the virus.

Covid-19 will probably end up being a new version of the common flu.

 

[OriginalMacRat]

This is a lot worse than what you are hearing.

25,000 have recovered and climbing.

 

[AustinIllini]

It looks like the Chinese have given up trying to quarantine the virus.

Covid-19 will probably end up being a new version of the common flu.

Outside of the epicenter for sure. The concentration in Wuhan is just crazy relative to the rest of the world.
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25,000 have recovered and climbing.

Ultimately, it's more likely the number of cases is underestimated than the number of deaths.

1-2% is very high, particularly for the older population with existing medical conditions. But China also cannot shut down forever.

 

[kofman13]

The bottom line is, when your Government:

• quarantines 50% of your population
• bans any travel, even down the street, without a permit
• marches quarantine violators to re-education camps
• runs two city cremation units at full capacity for weeks
• starts up 40 additional incinerators
• uses the military to run point on infection control
• stops nearly the entire workforce in half the country

...then the official story is nothing but propaganda lies. No country commits economic suicide for a "flu" virus that has killed a couple thousand people in a country of 1.7 billion.

This is a lot worse than what you are hearing.

i mean how else would you deal with an outbreak. they are trying to stop it from spreading even more.

 

[I7guy]

So ... Tim Cook’s internal memo about prioritizing safety of employees was cancelled lol...

If the memo was canceled all the stores would be open as if nothing happened.

 

[dazz87]

All about the $$$ for Apple isnt? shocking!

 

[len5]

Never forget Apple does whatever China tells them to do. If China says open the doors then Cook orders them open. It's all about profits. Not sure why people still don't understand that.....

 

[bored]

Strange headline. 29 / 42 is over two-thirds, not just "over half".

 

[BGPL]

Corona is a flu virus without a vaccine. Only 2600 have died from it in China thus far. This last winter, since the flu vaccine was so bad, the CDC is estimating 40,000 dead from it. That should help keep things in perspective - it's not about preventing deaths, it's about preventing another common flu-type illness from being in the wild, and we're at that point. Every year the flu kills 20,000-50,000 in the US alone. If the press printed this tomorrow but didn't mention it was normal, there would be panic.

In 1918, 500,000 americans died from the flu. That's what the flu does to a population without a vaccine and proper treatment. So pull it together, it's not a big deal. Those that are dying probably had an underlying condition or were the very young and/or elderly.

 

[newyorksole]

So ... Tim Cook’s internal memo about prioritizing safety of employees was cancelled lol

I get that we don’t know how long this thing will be going on for but it’s gotten worse and less contained since they made the decision to close stores in the first place

My thoughts exactly! It’s getting worse, so they reopen? Makes no sense to me. It’s spreading and more people are dying...

 

[coolfactor]

All about the $$$ for Apple isnt? shocking!

Easy to see it that way, but what about (a) customers needing support? (b) companies needing new equipment? ... there's lots of reasons to find a good balance in this situation beyond just making another dollar.
[automerge]1582592536[/automerge]

Corona is a flu virus without a vaccine. Only 2600 have died from it in China thus far. This last winter, since the flu vaccine was so bad, the CDC is estimating 40,000 dead from it. That should help keep things in perspective - it's not about preventing deaths, it's about preventing another common flu-type illness from being in the wild, and we're at that point. Every year the flu kills 20,000-50,000 in the US alone. If the press printed this tomorrow but didn't mention it was normal, there would be panic.

In 1918, 500,000 americans died from the flu. That's what the flu does to a population without a vaccine and proper treatment. So pull it together, it's not a big deal. Those that are dying probably had an underlying condition or were the very young and/or elderly.

Speaking of spreading misinformation, COVID-19 is NOT a "flu" virus.

COVID-19

COVID-19 is the disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that emerged in December 2019. Learn about symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

www.hopkinsmedicine.org

Come back to us when you've learned a few more things.

 

[thadoggfather]

Easy to see it that way, but what about (a) customers needing support? (b) companies needing new equipment? ... there's lots of reasons to find a good balance in this situation beyond just making another dollar.

You mean to say iPhones need fixing vs awareness of of public health in the form of an epidemic? #squadgoals

 

[[AUT] Thomas]

Questionable move... While a transmission should not occur if certain procedures are in place, they need to be carried out very strictly and precisely. I doubt it's worth it for non-essential goods.

The bottom line is, when your Government:

• quarantines 50% of your population
• bans any travel, even down the street, without a permit
• marches quarantine violators to re-education camps
• runs two city cremation units at full capacity for weeks
• starts up 40 additional incinerators
• uses the military to run point on infection control
• stops nearly the entire workforce in half the country

...then the official story is nothing but propaganda lies. No country commits economic suicide for a "flu" virus that has killed a couple thousand people in a country of 1.7 billion.

This is a lot worse than what you are hearing.

So, the first 3 are quarantine actions... nothing special there, at least not for China.
Next 2 items: In an epidemic it makes a lot of sense to burn all dead rather than conventional burrying. That alone will require at least double capacity. And yes, on top of that are the dead from the virus.
Even in western democrazy, use of military to perform certain tasks in a pandemic is very likely. Police and civil forces might not have capacity for that (or better things to do than the additonal security role). Also, the military does have equipment to deal with biological weapons, which come in handy during an epidemic.
Trying to contain the virus and thus stopping producton for a limited time is overall better than the alternative, especially when considering international reputation and recent history (SARS). Additionally, Chinese leadership is fearing to lose its face within the country if they fail on this. So, they can't handle it lightly regardless if it's 10%, 5% or 0.1% lethality. Last but not least the lethality of the virus highly depends on adequate healthcare. Those with sever symptoms often need a ventilator, some others might need other critical assistance. If you provide that, lethality seems to be around 1-3%. If you run out of capacity, lethality is likely much higher. As such it is vital to slow down the infection rate to a level at which it can be supported by the health care system. (Proper) Quarantine is helping a lot with that.

 

[Neepman]

What a few more infections when its all about the dollars ?

 

[goobot]

This whole thing could have been prevent if China just regulated it’s food markets to not be so disgusting.

 

[dazz87]

This whole thing could have been prevent if China just regulated it’s food markets to not be so disgusting.

This virus didnt come from a market....it came a lab in the same city just blocks away from the wet market.

 

[sakurarain]

I visited Apple Store HK Plaza in Shanghai last at around 17:30. Haha, I am the only visitor and warmly welcomed by all staffs, like a Super Premium VIP......